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SA designs and develops top cash-in-transit vehicle

As the number of cash-in-transit (CIT) heists in South Africa increases and the weapons and tactics that the perpetrators employ become ever more sophisticated, CIT companies have been searching for vehicles designed to withstand the growing risks of transporting cash. In light of this, Nissan Diesel South Africa, TFM Industries and the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) formed a consortium to design a new CIT vehicle in conjunction with one of South Africa's leading CIT companies.

Each organisation brings to the consortium different areas of expertise required to produce armoured CIT vehicles. Together they have created a new armoured, homologated, multipurpose vehicle (MPV), based on the Nissan Diesel UD40 chassis and driveline, which they are confident will meet the rigours of the CIT industry.

The consortium combines the research and development skills of the CSIR's dedicated vehicle specialists who focused on the design of military, strategic, operational and tactical armoured vehicles, with the engineering and manufacturing capabilities of TFM and Nissan Diesel. TFM has previously produced armoured cars for customers including the South African Police Force, the South African National Defence Force and the United Nations from 1970 to 1996 and, more recently, for CIT companies. Nissan Diesel is geared to produce the adaptable chassis for the new MPV.

"When the consortium was formed in 2004, the CSIR began designing the new vehicle with support from Nissan Diesel and TFM, and created a data pack comprising CAD-drawings for TFM," explains Ajith Gopal of the CSIR Defence, Peace, Safety and Security operating unit.

"Using this data pack and engineering support from the CSIR, TFM produced a prototype, which was built on the Nissan Diesel UD40 chassis and driveline and unveiled in July 2005," he notes. This specialist truck body builder has since begun manufacturing armoured vehicles on a dedicated production line at its Olifantsfontein plant.

TFM Industries project manager Graham Preston says that the MPV vehicle is a modular, protected vehicle, developed for the local and international CIT market.

"Utilising a Nissan Diesel chassis and monocoque armoured body, the modular design lends itself to a wide variety of applications in the market for protected vehicles," he says. "In addition, different layouts are available to suit a variety of needs in the market for commercial armoured vehicles."

Nissan Diesel South Africa guided the development process to ensure that once the design met customer requirements, the Rosslyn-based commercial vehicle manufacturer was confident in the overall reliability of the MPV for the CIT industry and comfortable to provide warranty support.

"In an application like this, reliability is essential while structural and mechanical integrity are critical," says Nissan Diesel South Africa executive vice president of operations, Frans Cloete.

He says that the CIT vehicles being produced by the consortium are far-removed from the conventional commercial vehicles produced at his company's plant. "We could only achieve our objectives through a consortium approach and are pleased to be working with TFM, which has the engineering expertise and manufacturing capability to produce these specialised vehicles," says Cloete.

TFM Industries managing director Johan van der Merwe believes that the market is ready for these newly developed MPVs. "We are thus investing in jigs and fixtures as well as recruiting staff with the necessary skills to produce sufficient volumes for the CIT industry," he says.

Nissan Diesel will provide primary support on the automotive components while TFM, through its existing product support structures and its agents across South Africa, will supply any components related to the armour to Nissan Diesel's nationwide network of branches.

"TFM's engineering expertise and manufacturing capability enable us to participate in a project like this. They are able to produce the same component to the same exacting standards every time, which makes the task of supporting such specialised vehicles in the after market that much easier," says Cloete.

"Our involvement in the development and production of the MPV for the CIT industry is in line with our vision to identify niche markets and create and manufacture products for them," Cloete says. "Previously we worked with Transnet on the development of their road/rail vehicles and we believe that the ability of our local engineering department as well as our local assembly line enables us to pursue opportunities in the manufacture of niche products.

"As a company involved in ongoing research and product development, we are pleased to be associated with TFM, another organisation that values these pursuits," concludes Cloete.

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